Lyris Connections Blog

Survey Reveals Email Marketing Insights for the Banking Industry

After a turbulent few years, the banking industry is working to regain trust. In this era of heightened expectations for transparency and relevancy – intensified by exploding media choices – consumers are increasingly assuming control of their relationships with their financial services providers. Therefore, it’s imperative that banking industry brands distinguish themselves by delivering exceptional customer interactions that optimize relationships and rebuild trust. Customer retention has never been more important, or more difficult to manage.

Lyris recently sponsored a survey by The Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) to examine trends in digital marketing and identify any gaps in understanding between consumers and marketing executives in various industries, including banking. The EIU survey indicates that while marketing executives in the banking industry are making an effort to invest in current customers, they lag behind other industries in presenting consumers with what they want.

Key findings from the survey of marketing executives include:

Customer retention is now cited as the top marketing goal by 42% of executives, a significant jump from 23% five years ago (and much higher than the industry average, shown in survey findings at 28%).

Key findings from the consumer point-of-view include:

41% of consumers seek to engage with banking brands via company websites; third-party websites are next in line (21%), followed by email (20%).

Email was listed as the top channel for pre-purchase communications and post-purchase assessment (by 37% and 59% of respondents, respectively).

6% of consumers prefer to engage with banking brands using mobile apps, double the all-industry average, yet investment in mobile email marketing is less than other industries.

The consumer findings have a couple of significant implications for banking executives. First, because email is a preferred means of communication for consumers, marketers should be sure to employ effective email marketing best practices related to deliverability, testing, and dynamic content. In addition, marketers need to create messages and select digital channels that make the most impact in a particular phase of a consumer’s buying journey; during post-purchase, for example, marketers should focus on highly personalized emails.

Using email list management software like that from Lyris can help in providing authentic product information and personalized deals based on consumer behaviors across websites and campaigns, and support proper email campaign management to help avoid sending high email volumes and list fatigue. To learn more about how Lyris solutions can help, visit www.lyris.com/solutions.

About the Author: Lyris Marketing Team

With more than 20 years' experience, Lyris is a global provider of innovative email and digital marketing solutions that help companies reach audiences at scale and create personalized value at every touch point. Lyris' products and services empower publishers to design, automate, and optimize experiences that facilitate superior engagement, increase conversions, and deliver measurable business value.